ATKINS  He patrolled the sideline with an intent fervor, watching as his team replicated the tenacity and discipline it had shown all week in practice.

The game was tight, and his team needed one more score to pull out the last-second victory. Despite the pressure of the situation, he never allowed it to show. A slight glimpse of a smile could be detected from the coach as the defense forced a turnover to give his offense one last opportunity to win the game.

He signaled plays to the quarterback. This was not the time to be tricky; it was time to get back to basics as the offense marched down the field. With seconds left in the game, he called a play that was a staple in his play book - a simple draw play he hoped would work to perfection. At the snap of the ball, the halfback took the handoff and crossed the goal line just as time expired. With the score, Arkansas' original gridiron general, Carl Sorrels, had chalked up one of his 144 victories at Atkins High School.

Sorrels was posthumously inducted into the Arkansas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame on July 13. Sorrels' son Charlie recently sat down with The Courier to talk about his father's induction, career and playing for his dad.

"It was tough. It is tough playing for your dad. You have to be perfect as you can be, because there is a lot more expected of you," Charlie said. "I tried to limit my mistakes, because that would open the door for other team members to think it was OK to make mistakes."

Charlie said he enjoyed playing for his dad and appreciated the things he learned from his father.

"It was tough, but I wouldn't trade it for the world," Charlie said. "He was an outstanding coach, and I am not saying that because he was my dad. I have had a lot of people, many of them former coaches, say he was ahead of his time. We threw for 2,000 yards during my senior year in 1971. That's not a lot now, but it was then."

Carl Sorrels was born in Vian, Okla., but attended high school in Atkins where he was a successful high school athlete. He graduated from Atkins in 1941.

Sorrels played collegiate football at Arkansas Tech for three years, making the All-AIC team before transferring to State Teachers College (University of Central Arkansas) where he also earned a berth on the AIC honor squad.

Sorrels began his coaching career at Fort Smith High School as an assistant under Frank Jones in 1947. After two years there, he returned to his alma mater as the Red Devils head football coach. While at Atkins, Sorrels also operated an insurance agency. Sorrels served two stints in the military in World War II and the Korean War.

Sorrels coached 25 years. He was a member of two Arkansas High Coaches Association All-Star staffs in 1957 and 1961, serving as West head coach in 1961. He also served as president of the AHSCA in 1964-65.

Sorrels' teams produced 144 victories. His 1971 team went 4-0 in the 1A South conference and claimed the Class A state football championship, defeating Walnut Ridge 35-20 in the title game. That '71 Red Devil team finished the year 11-2. His 1950 team went to the finals of the state playoffs, and his 1952 team reached the semifinal round. His 1956 team posted a 9-1 record in Class B.

Sorrels married Rosamond Lemley of Atkins and had three sons  Joe, who is retired from Arkansas Nuclear One in Russellville; Bill, a pharmacist in Atkins and Charlie, currently the head football coach and athletic director at Atkins and president of the AHSCA Executive Committee.

Charlie said he had the opportunity to talk to many coaches through the years who said they never wanted to face his dad's teams.

"I've talked to a lot of old coaches, and I even talked to some during the banquet who said they never wanted to face Atkins," Charlie said. "He always had his teams prepared and always had a trick play up his sleeves."

Charlie said his dad would have been very pleased being inducted into the Hall of Fame.

"There are a lot of coaches who were his friends who have been inducted. "I think Dad would have been extremely happy with being elected to the Hall of Fame," Charlie said. He wouldn't have only been proud for the family, but he would have thought this a big honor for Atkins High School and the community of Atkins."

Charlie said there were many people his dad would have thanked for being elected to the Hall of Fame.

"The first group he would have thanked would have been his former players," Charlie said. "He always felt it an honor to coach at Atkins. He had several opportunities to go elsewhere. He never left, because he didn't know if he would have been successful anywhere else."

Charlie said it was bittersweet when he broke his dad's record of career victories a few years ago.

"I broke his overall wins record here at Atkins several years ago," Charlie said. "Of course, you want to win all the games you can, but it was still a bittersweet moment."

Charlie said his dad would be very pleased with the way his former players remembered him.

"I think the thing he would cherish the most is that still to his old players he is still 'Coach,'" Charlie said. "I have a lot of people who have come up to me and expressed to me the lessons that dad taught them. He would be most proud of that."

Charlie said it was hard to follow his dad as head coach in Atkins, but coaching had always been a part of the family's life. Charlie said since 1949, there has been a Sorrels on the coaching staff at Atkins except for two years.

"Because he was such a popular coach here, it was hard to follow in his footsteps. I think that motivated me as well, because there was a standard set," Charlie said. "Coaching has been part of our family for years. Even today, my two brothers miss very few of my ball games. After college, they missed a few of dad's ball games. We were raised on a school bus going to ball games. We all supported dad, and now my brothers support me. I think he would be proud that we have carried on that tradition he started in 1949.